Ghosts We Have Known
by thatbitchoverthere
Summary: Clara Oswald finds herself face-to-face with a ghost from the past. I OWN NOTHING.


Clara Oswald sat down her copy of Pride and Prejudice just as the opening bars of Rolling in the Deep by Adele began playing outside in the diner.

Technically speaking, it wasn't even outside. Nor was it a diner. But despite all of her travels, it still made her head hurt slightly when she attempted to puzzle together the logic of it all. Simply put, there was no logic to it. No logic for a woman living between her last heartbeats, traveling with a woman who was nearly as old as time itself, never dying nor aging.

As her thoughts occasionally did, Clara started to think of the Doctor. She'd seen him occasionally on her travels with Ashildr, who had stopped calling herself "me" due to the fact that she was no longer alone, but all the faces she'd seen were never of her Doctor. She had seen the tenth incarnation of him (or was it eleventh?) at the Library-one of Clara's favorite planets. She and Ashildr traveled there nearly every week-but beyond that, all the other incarnations were those that she had very fuzzy memories of due to her splintering herself all over time to save him from the Great Intelligence.

Still, whenever she thought of the Doctor, she thought of the tall, grumpy Scotsman. The man who had killed for her (did it really count though, given the fact that he had regenerated?), just for a slim of a chance to save her. The same man who had spent over four billion years breaking through a wall made of diamond, motivated only to get to Gallifrey to save her.

The man who no longer remembered her.

"Miss Clara?"

Clara was brought out of her thoughts by the TARDIS door opening, revealing one of her other travelling companions, Sam. He was a man from Victorian London, one who had found himself in a spot of trouble and ended up going to the Posternoster Gang for help...leading him to meet Clara and Ashildr. When they weren't travelling, the group stayed in one spot, working as a diner. It actually went well, earning them enough money for whatever they might need it for.

"What is it, Sam?"

"I was getting tired, but there's a group of four out here-"

Clara smiled, standing up. "I can handle it. Get some rest, you've been working your arse off for the past few days. Can't have you falling asleep during a prank with Jane, can I?"

"No, ma'am," Sam said with a shake of his head. "Wouldn't dream of it."

Clara stepped past him and into the diner. She still had her waitress outfit on, so she just pulled on an apron and headed behind the counter. The group of four was seated at one of the booths, already drinking out of bottles of Cola-

She froze when she noticed the woman sitting on the side by the man wearing a green striped shirt. The woman has wild blonde curls and sparkling eyes, a playful smile on her face and a blue journal in her hands...

"River," Clara whispered faintly. It had been years since Clara had last seen her, but she remembered River vividly. What she couldn't understand was how she was here-River was dead. She had died, and the Doctor had saved her the only way he could...

Then another thought struck Clara; the Doctor had talked about River a lot during their travels, told her how River had one of those Vortex Manipulators, how she used it to travel and get in and out of jail. Clara continued watching River for a moment and nodded. Yes, that explained it. River looked much younger here; it have been very early in her timeline then.

Clara watched the group furtively, praying they wouldn't notice her. She could see three of the people very well, but not the fourth. She saw River, the man in green, and a woman with red hair and a Scottish accent that rivaled even the Doctor's. After awhile, the Scottish woman, River and the man in green stood up, all looking extremely happy and excited. But there was a strange look in River's eyes, a concern so well hidden that Clara wasn't sure if it was actually there or she was just imagining it.

The final member of the group was finally visible, and the sight of him felt like a sucker-punch. He was lingering at the table, looking as if he really wished he could prolong the inevitable. The man was the Doctor.

Not the grumpy Scotsman that Clara had gotten use to seeing, no. The man standing no more than five feet away from her was her Doctor. The man who had appeared on her doorstep dressed as a monk, the man that had taken her to see the Rings of Akhaten. Instantly, a wave of tears began to form in her eyes and she tried to force them back. Crying would do no good, because he would notice and he would come to check on her. Like he always did.

She turned around, blinking the tears away rapidly and wiping away the ones that had managed to work their way down her cheek.

"Are you alright?"

She took a deep breath and turned around; sure enough, there he was. She'd almost forgotten how handsome he was; the strong jaw-line and chin, the eyes that changed color in the light. The floppy hair. The only thing different about him was the tweed jacket he was wearing; she hadn't ever seen him wear it. Silently deciding that she liked the purple one better, she cleared her throat. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for asking."

He nodded and stole a glance towards outside the diner where his friends were waiting for him by the car. "We're going for a picnic," he said suddenly, making Clara look up from the notepad that she was trying her best to concentrate only on. A small, sad smile crossed over his face. "I think River knows the truth." He chuckled. "Then again, River always knows."

"You must like her a lot," Clara remarked, smiling softly.

"I do," the Doctor said, turning to Clara with a vivid smile on his face. His expression froze for a moment when he met Clara's eyes. "Have we met before?"

"What?"

"You just seem...familiar."

Clara forced a smile, "Just one of those faces."

The smile was back again, this time real. "I suppose so. Did we, er, pay? I don't usually have any money with me-" he began to wildly pat his jacket pockets, looking for money of some sort.

"Don't worry about it," Clara informed him lightly. "It's on the house."

The Doctor's brow furrowed for a moment, almost like he was confused, then he nodded. "Thank you, Miss...?"

"Oswin," Clara lied, swallowing back a sob. "Clara Oswin."

The Doctor smiled, "Nice name, you should definitely keep it."

Clara laughed, "I think I probably will."

He nodded, looked as if he was about to say something, turned to Clara and gave her a nod. "I'd better go. They're waiting on me." He motioned toward the others.

"I think you better had," Clara agreed, biting her lip.

He started to head for the door, but paused as he started to open it. "Thank you, Clara."

"You welcome," she replied.

With that, he gave her a wave and stepped outside to join River and the others. Clara turned away from the door and let out the sob that she had been holding.

Stupid Doctor. It was Amy and Rory.

Clara sniffled, remembering the Doctor's words. So that's who the other two people were. She turned and watched them take off in the car, kicking up a cloud of dust as they went. She gave a weak smile. "Go on, you clever boy. And run."


End file.
